San Francisco schools showed a 23 percent drop in the number of elementary schoolchildren skipping classes this year as citywide efforts, including parental prosecution, appeared to be paying off, district officials told The Chronicle on Monday.

The most recent numbers follow at least a three-year trend, with the number of the most serious elementary school truants cut in half since the 2005-06 school year.

The trend benefits not only the students who are attending class more regularly. It means more money for the district - $372,862 was tied to the increased attendance this school year alone.

Superintendent Carlos Garcia and District Attorney Kamala Harris were expected to tout the new numbers this morning at a news conference designed to highlight the success of a two-year effort to combat truancy.

At the end of April, when the statistics were last compiled, 1,330 elementary students were habitual or chronic truants this year, down from 1,730 last year, 2,517 two years ago and 2,856 three years back. About 24,500 elementary students attend San Francisco schools.

The data include habitually truant students who had 10 to 19 unexcused absences and chronic truants with 20 or more such absences.

In upper grades, numbers were more stagnant. Middle school truancy dropped about 4 percent this year to 448 chronic and habitual truants out of about 11,500 students, while at the high schools there was an uptick of 2 percent to 1,741 out of 19,000 students.

Recent citywide efforts have focused on the elementary grades, where families play a greater role in student attendance, district officials said.

Efforts have included better identification of habitual and chronic truants, meetings with families - and in at least seven cases taking parents to court.

This year, the district also referred 110 elementary school families to a district review board, up from 34 the year before. There, parents and guardians heard about the legal consequences of truancy, such as fines, and gained access to community services including parental support, mental health options and social workers.

School attendance is compulsory in California from ages 6 to 18 - something too many families don't know, Garcia said.

Yet some criticized the program as too punitive, Garcia said Monday.

"The whole purpose of the program wasn't to nail parents; it was to get them to send their children to school," he said. "If kids aren't in school, how can they receive an education?"

For two years, Harris has sent letters at the beginning of the fall semester to every family in the district warning them of the consequences of truancy.

She said she took on the issue after seeing data that showed 94 percent of the city's homicide victims under age 25 were high school dropouts.

"There is such an inextricable link in my mind between public safety and public education," she said.

She acknowledged the hard-line approach with parents was not particularly popular. But, she said, "If it takes me being the bad guy by highlighting the connection - by saying I'll prosecute parents for truancy - I'll do it."

Those prosecuted had children who missed 40 to 80 days out of the 180-day academic year, Harris said.

All had improved attendance after the legal intervention.

"The point was that maybe it was a bit controversial, but let's be as shocked as we are about a child not going to school as we are when a crime is committed," Harris said.

Drop in truancy

San Francisco public schools, in partnership with District Attorney Kamala Harris, focused on reducing truancy. The following represents a one-year drop of 23 percent overall in the number of kids skipping school.

Elementary and K-8 school reduction in habitual truancy*

2007-08

2008-09

Difference

Change

1,324 students

1,066 students

-258

19%

Elementary and K-8 school reduction in chronic truancy**

2007-08

2008-09

Difference

Change

406

264

-142

35%

* Habitual truancy occurs when a child accumulates 10 to 19 full days of unexcused absences from school.

** Chronic truancy constitutes more than 20 full days of unexcused absences.